World

Two Muslim women from Terengganu, Malaysia were publicly lashed with a cane six times as punishment for sexual involvement, a crime in that country that both pleaded guilty to.

This physical punishment is the first to be publicly displayed in the country, Terengganu state executive council member Satiful Bahri Mamat said. It was witnessed by 150 other Muslims in a courtroom to teach the rest of society not to follow the guilty party’s example, but has caught the attention and outrage of human rights activists.

Malaysian Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad, although not an LGBT ally, agreed that it was too harsh.

“[The punishment] does not reflect the ideals of justice and compassion of Islam. As this was the first case for them, they should've been given advice and not punished … We need to show that Islam is not a ruthless religion that shames people with harsh punishments," he said, reported News Channel Asia.